One thing we pride ourselves on here at Thunderbird Atlatl is our superior customer service. We are extremely receptive to our customers and make ourselves available almost 24/7!

We appreciate our customers’ feedback. If there is a problem, we try to correct it instantly. We are proud of our ability to get orders out as quickly as possible even rush orders. If it means a few late nights at the shop, our staff is willing and able to do that. Give us a call at 800-836-4520 or a cell at 607-743-4379 and we would be glad to help you figure out the best atlatl equipment for you.

We sometimes get calls from people who have ordered from other atlatl manufacturers and were unable to get their items. Please know we have 20 years of exemplary customer service backing our products. Check out some of the comments we have received recently!

“I just wanted to give thanks and props to Bob and Cheryl for great customer service. The USPS managed to bend a tube hard enough to splinter a pack of 6 darts. They promptly and cheerfully reshipped my order and I had them 2 days later. Plus, I like a business where the boss answers the phone. It was an added bonus talking to the legendary Bob Berg.”

Regarding a Kanakadea we sold on Amazon:
“I got these to get started in atlatl. They are great! They are accurate and they fly far and hit hard. I can’t say enough good things about this. The ground where I live is frozen and the darts hit the ground so hard they actually went in a coupel of inches! this is Awesome!”

Regarding a Catatonk we sold on Amazon:
“This design is perfect. I don’t have long fingers and adequately grasping the dart has always been a problem. This Catatonk design fits perfectly. It provides a solid foundation for your hand, allows your index finger to just have to lightly hold in place the dart because its seated on a support trough ahead of your finger. Very stable. You can walk around with a dart in place its so stable. Great atlatl.”

“Love your products! We have had HUNDREDS of youth and adults using your atlatls as part of our programs. By the way, here is a link to a recent TV interview.”

Make Magazine published an article last fall in its Kit issue about our atlatl kits and how they worked. They asked us if they could review the kits last summer for the article. The review appeared in the magazine’s Siege and Ballistics Kits section.

Here’s a You Tube video showing our Kanakadea kit being used. The section about the our atlatl kit starts at about 4:58 if you don’t want to watch the entire video!

The Thunderbird Atlatl staff is back in Candor, New York in full force and ready for spring! We look forward to working with you in providing you high quality atlatl equipment. We pride ourselves on our customer service so please give us a call if you have any questions or need some assistance in deciding on what equipment will work best for you. Owner. atlatl and dart designer Bob Berg recently sat down and took a few moments to explain differences between darts produced at the Thunderbird shop.
Why the differences between atlatl darts? At Thunderbird Atlatl we make atlatl darts for lots of different purposes.

Five foot, 5 ounce ash darts may not interest someone who wants to compete in the International Standard Accuracy Contest but when it comes to summer camp or scouts with groups of 8 to 12 year old participants nothing works better. They are both durable and affordable. Our 6 foot, six ounce ash darts likewise are great for the younger set and more mature beginning atlatlists for some of the same reasons. These are the dart shafts that are included in our Thunderbird Atlatl Kits™ that we have been selling the last 16 years.

The 3 to 5 ounce bamboo darts that we make are anywhere from about 5 to 8 feet or longer with conical copper points. They are fantastic for competition because they fly straight and true. I don’t think there is a natural material better than the Yadake Bamboo we use for making these world class competition darts. Our formula for building these bamboo darts originated from adapting methods developed by Japanese arrow makers. The copper points we use originated from a study of artifacts of the Old Copper Culture of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. While eclectic in traditional but cross culture themes, these darts really perform. Some of the highest scores on the International Accuracy Contest have been achieved with bamboo darts.

We make lighter 7 foot darts from Engelman Spruce and Douglas Fir from British Columbia for better accuracy at longer distances but they are not as good for penetration. We have been testing these darts lately to see if they indeed hold up to rigorous use on the range. So far they have done well

We make darts that are as short as 4 feet and weigh less than an ounce for distance throwing for those who want to try their hand at an interesting aspect of the atlatl sport.

It is therefore important to consider what your goals are when you purchase your Thunderbird Atlatl™ atlatls and darts.

Our 5 foot darts at 5 ounces are designed for younger beginning atlatlists.

The 6 foot 6 ounce ash darts are a good all around dart for practice and stump shooting. The 6 foot darts have been used successfully for hunting by younger or smaller atlatlists.

The principle is that longer darts are more accurate, heavier darts are better for penetration and lighter, smaller darts are good for distance. Longer, lighter darts are good for target shooting.

We have taken another step forward in the manufacture of our popular tapered darts! Along with our high quality standard wooden Ash darts and bamboo darts, we now produce quality wooden tapered darts. Our tapered darts provide high quality flight characteristics. Our tapered darts are available in straight grained Ash that we mill ourselves from veneer quality logs as well as Spruce and Douglas fir. Seven foot tapered ash darts weigh in at 7 ounces which is excellent for hunting. The seven foot spruce and fir darts are great target darts rivaling the flight characteristics of the more expensive bamboo darts that we also make.

Thunderbird Atlatl started producing quality tapered darts early in our twenty years of business. Our original method was cumbersome and labor intensive so Bob Berg designed and built a more efficient method of tapered dart production. This milestone has made it easier for us to provide the high quality tapered darts that we are now offering to our customers without a long wait. If you would like to add tapered darts to your atlatl set the process adds a dollar each to each dart.

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Welcome to Thunderbird Atlatl

The atlatl or spear-thrower is an ancient weapon used by man for tens of thousands of years. Today, the atlatl is used for sports ranging from target shooting, to hunting and fishing. Thunderbird Atlatl is the world's largest atlatl manufacturer.